A new breed of solar cells, originally developed at the University of Oxford by Professor Henry Snaith and his research team, could bring low-cost electricity to the market sooner than predicted. The researchers have formulated a solar material that uses tin instead of the earlier version which contained lead. Perovskite-type solar cells have the same crystal structure as the mineral pervoskite, which is a mixture of calcium, titanium, and oxygen, but in fact contain none of those elements.
The tin-based cells are nearly transparent (see figure ) and can be used in building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV). They can be easily integrated into architectural glass used in large commercial developments worldwide. The technology is being commercialized by Oxford PV, which expects to sign the first licensing deal with glass manufacturers next year.
The tin-based perovskite-type solar cells developed at the University of Oxford are nearly transparent.
The cells are constructed using a low temperature and simple screen printing manufacturing process with a very low materials and capital equipment cost. The research team has already produced cells with 17% efficiency, and hopes to have 20% efficient samples soon. Volume production is expected in late 2015.
According to Kevin Arthur, Oxford PV’s Chief Executive and co-founder, “The use of tin gives us even more scope to produce incredibly cost-effective solar cells. We have been predicting that our cells could generate power for as little as $0.20/W, but this could drive down costs even further.” And, he notes, the tin-based-cell breakthrough, “could have a significant impact on the speed with which we can bring this important technology to market… [and] the elimination of lead will certainly reduce customer concerns over recyclability over the life of the product.”
For further information, contact Chris Case, chief technology officer; +44 1864309618.
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